EnglishUSA’s seventh annual Professional Development conference welcomed record attendance this year as Intensive English Programme (IEP) providers gathered to help galvanise the sector, encourage best practice and learn from peers across the country.
Held in San Francisco on 22-23 January, the conference welcomed 226 attendees – some 50 more than last year’s event.
“Our members are our greatest asset, and we are currently exploring additional opportunities to involve them”
EnglishUSA’s Vice President for Outreach, Donna Myers, told The PIE News that the number and quality of submissions to this year’s event were indicative of members’ interest in being more heavily involved in the organisation and sector.
“Our members are our greatest asset, and we are currently exploring additional opportunities to involve them,” she commented.
The increasing enthusiasm for active engagement will be good news for the association, which rallied its members last year to offer feedback on draft guidance on policy affecting IEPs issued by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, taking a “strength in numbers” approach to ensure the sector’s voice is heard.
Conference attendees this year were given the opportunity to comment on proposed SEVP policies and processes during information sessions on legislation and immigration matters, and took part in a Skype session with SEVP in Washington, DC.
A presentation on the future of English programmes was particularly well attended, with members indicating a desire to diversify their student bodies and grow their pathway and bridge programmes.
Other topics of discussion included the future of Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah Scholarship Programme (KASP) and growing numbers of Saudi students on some programmes,; how to implement culturally inclusive activity programmes; and the use of placement tests.
The conference also provided ample opportunity for meeting others in the sector. Myers pointed out that a common sentiment, voiced by one return attendee, is that the small, focused conference is unique “because everyone here cares about the same things you care about”.
